Bitcoin Price: $106k
Fear & Greed Index: 84
Hashrate: 781 EH/s
Nodes: 21,200
MSTR Price: $387 – $389

Today is a good day. I woke up to find that on the 21st January 2025, Ross Ulbricht, founder of Silk Road and one of those souls that will forever be remembered in Bitcoin’s history, is free. Trump gave him, as promised, a full, unconditional pardon.

But what struck me this morning, really struck me, was the photograph of Ross walking free. I had been listening to the phone call that Ross had made to Bitcoin Magazine which you can find here: https://x.com/APompliano/status/1881896616325697987

During the call, Ross talks about ‘the Hole.’ Isolation. Trapped in a concrete room, his freedom taken from him, and left only in his mind. He described his thoughts as running away from him, a position I guess many of us have found ourselves in during times of dread, desperation and despair. It was a poignant confession.

At first, you see a man free. A man sentenced to 40 years in jail for building a website. A website that allowed people to exchange Bitcoin. Granted it was used for illicit purposes by some, but not all. The libertarian does not outlaw the gun or the car because it can be used for harm, for that harm is a result of the man and not the object itself. Ross was an early Bitcoiner, he believed in freedom. And for it, his freedom was taken from him.

And so I listened to the phone call he had made, and then I looked at this image again and I saw what he is carrying. In the context of his ordeal in isolation, that small plant speaks volumes.

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Bitcoin X has been ablaze in recent days. Trump’s inauguration did not mention the SBR, and many have taken the opportunity to jump on it and proclaim that Trump intends to break his promise. I do not believe this is the case for one very simple reason:

If Trump had announced the SBR at his inauguration, the Bitcoin price would have ballooned beyond proportion, and the US would have dealt its cards. Instead, it is my opinion that they are waiting. They will be in the process of accumulating as much as they can, and they may even begin to sell off gold to acquire said Bitcoin as well.

In short, the game theory is playing out in real time and we could see drastic movement in price this year. The US bureaucratic machine needs to work the regulation out and it could be a lengthy process. But the signs are there, and Trump’s pardon of Ross is one of them.

2025 could be absolutely huge for the space.

And I am certain it will be.

Strap in, folks.